Person-based information aggregation

ABSTRACT

Techniques are described for aggregating person-based information on a computing device. The computing device includes a display device and one or more processors. The processors are configured to determine a context of the computing device, and identify a contact associated with the currently-executing application and a plurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact. The processors are configured to receive, from two or more different sources and based on at least one contact, information associated with the contact that includes a respective portion of information received from each of the different sources, determine, based on the context of the computing device, a respective priority value for each of the portions of the information, select, based on the respective priority value, one or more portions of the information, and output, for display, a graphical user interface including at least the selected one or more portions of the information.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.61/714,669, filed Oct. 16, 2012, the entire content of which isincorporated herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

As smartphones, tablets, and other mobile computing devices become morepowerful and more common, applications for these computerized devicesare becoming more widely available. Many smartphones and tabletcomputers are associated with virtual application stores or markets, andare often provided with several applications offering a set offunctions. For example, a user may install a social networkingapplication, an email application, and/or a calendar application on themobile computing device. Each application may provide a different set ofinformation and/or functionality to the user of the mobile computingdevice and each may provide information associated with a particularperson, location, or event. As the number of available mobileapplications increases, the number of sources that may be accessed bythe user to view the information associated with a particular person,location, or event also increases, which may make it increasinglydifficult for the user to organize and view such information.

SUMMARY

In one example, a method includes determining, by a computing device, acontext of the computing device, the context of the computing deviceincluding a currently-executing application, and identifying, by thecomputing device and based on the context of the computing device, acontact associated with the currently-executing application and aplurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact. The methodmay further include receiving, by the computing device from two or moredifferent sources and based on at least one contact identifier from theplurality of contact identifiers, information associated with thecontact, wherein the information includes a respective portion ofinformation received from each of the two or more different sources, andwherein the information associated with the contact includes informationother than the plurality of contact identifiers associated with thecontact, and determining, by the computing device and based on thecontext of the computing device, a respective priority value for each ofthe portions of the information. The method may further includeselecting, by the computing device and based on the respective priorityvalue, one or more portions of the information; and outputting, by thecomputing device and for display, a graphical user interface includingat least the selected one or more portions of the information.

In another example, a computer-readable storage medium is encoded withinstructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors of acomputing device to determine a context of the computing device, thecontext of the computing device including a currently-executingapplication, and identify, based on the context of the computing device,a contact associated with the currently-executing application and aplurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact. Theinstructions may also cause the one or more processors of the computingdevice to receive, from two or more different sources and based on atleast one contact identifier from the plurality of contact identifiers,information associated with the contact, wherein the informationincludes a respective portion of information received from each of thetwo or more different sources, and wherein the information associatedwith the contact includes information other than the plurality ofcontact identifiers associated with the contact, and determine, based onthe context of the computing device, a respective priority value foreach of the portions of the information. The instructions may also causethe one or more processors of the computing device to select, based onthe respective priority value, one or more portions of the information,and output, for display, a graphical user interface including at leastthe selected one or more portions of the information.

In another embodiment, the disclosure is directed to a computing device,comprising a display device and one or more processors. The one or moreprocessors are configured to determine a context of the computingdevice, the context of the computing device including acurrently-executing application, identify, based on the context of thecomputing device, a contact associated with the currently-executingapplication and a plurality of contact identifiers associated with thecontact, and receive, from two or more different sources and based on atleast one contact identifier from the plurality of contact identifiers,information associated with the contact, wherein the informationincludes a respective portion of information received from each of thetwo or more different sources, and wherein the information associatedwith the contact includes information other than the plurality ofcontact identifiers associated with the contact. The one or moreprocessors may be further configured to determine, based on the contextof the computing device, a respective priority value for each of theportions of the information, select, based on the respective priorityvalue, one or more portions of the information, and output, for display,a graphical user interface including at least the selected one or moreportions of the information.

The details of one or more examples of the disclosure are set forth inthe accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features,objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description anddrawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a computingdevice for aggregating person-based information, in accordance with oneor more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating further details of an examplecomputing device for aggregating information, in accordance with one ormore techniques of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a graphical user interfaceassociated with person-based information aggregation, in accordance withone or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example process for prioritizinginformation for use in person-based information aggregation, inaccordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example process for aggregatingperson-based information, in accordance with one or more techniques ofthe present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an example computing device thatoutputs graphical content for display at a remote device, in accordancewith one or more techniques of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In general, this disclosure is directed to techniques for aggregatingand presenting information associated with a contact (e.g., a person, abusiness, etc.) that is identified by a computing device based on acontext of the computing device. For example, the context of thecomputing device may include an application currently-executing at thecomputing device, the location of the computing device, a current time,scheduled events, etc. In determining the context of the computingdevice, the computing device may determine that a contact and relatedcontact identifier (e.g., name, telephone number, address, emailaddress, user account information, instant messaging username, or otheridentifying information associated with a contact) is included within orotherwise associated with information displayed at a screen of thecomputing device. Based on the determined contact, the computing devicemay identify various other contact identifiers associated with thecontact, such as phone numbers, names, addresses, email addresses,instant messaging handles, etc. Using the various contact identifiers,the computing device may retrieve additional information associated withthe contact from multiple sources by, for example, searching forinformation that corresponds to any one of the contact identifiers andby accessing social networking, instant messaging, email, and otherservices.

In this way, a computing device configured in accordance with techniquesof the disclosure can retrieve and aggregate information associated withthe contact and associated with a context of the computing device from avariety of sources using various different contact identifiers.Techniques of this disclosure may also enable a computing device toautomatically display information associated with a specific person andretrieved from various sources based on a current context of thecomputing device. By automatically aggregating and presenting thisinformation, techniques of the disclosure may relieve a user fromsearching through various sources for information related to an email,phone call, text message, social network post, map, or other informationcurrently displayed by a computing device. In this manner, the computingdevice may automatically aggregate and display the contact-specificinformation at a time when the information may be relevant and useful tothe user.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a computingdevice for aggregating person-based information, in accordance with oneor more aspects of the present disclosure. Computing device 2 mayinclude one or more stand-alone devices or may be part of a largersystem. For instance, computing device 2 may include a smart phone,tablet, personal digital assistant, computer, or other computing device.As shown in FIG. 1, computing device 2 may include user interface (UI)device 4, UI module 6, aggregation module 8, and one or more applicationmodules 11A-11N. Other examples of a computing device 2 that implementtechniques of the disclosure may include additional components not shownin FIG. 1.

In some examples, UI device 4 is configured to receive tactile, audio,or visual input. UI device 4, as shown in FIG. 1, may include atouch-sensitive and/or presence-sensitive display or any other type ofdevice for receiving input. UI device 4 may output content such asgraphical user interface (GUI) 12 for display. In the example of FIG. 1,UI device 4 may be a presence-sensitive display that can display agraphical user interface and receive input from user 9 using capacitive,inductive, and/or optical detection at or near the presence sensitivedisplay.

UI module 6 may perform one or more functions to receive input, such asuser input or network data, and send such input to other componentsassociated with computing device 2, such as aggregation module 8. Forexample, UI module 6 may determine input, such as a gesture, performedby user 9 at UI device 4. UI module 6 may also receive data fromcomponents associated with computing device 2, such as aggregationmodule 8. Using the data, UI module 6 may cause other componentsassociated with computing device 2, such as UI device 4, to provideoutput based on the data. For instance, UI module 6 may receive datafrom aggregation module 8 that causes UI device 4 to display GUI 12.

UI module 6 may be implemented in various ways. For example, UI module 6may be implemented as a downloadable or pre-installed application. Inanother example, UI module 6 may be implemented as part of a hardwareunit of computing device 2. In another example, UI module 6 may beimplemented as part of an operating system of computing device 2.

Aggregation module 8 may include functionality to perform any variety ofoperations on computing device 2. For instance, aggregation module 8 mayinclude functionality to identify a context of the computing device, acontact, and contact identifiers associated with the contact, and toaggregate information about the contact in accordance with techniquesdescribed herein. Aggregation module 8 may be implemented in variousways. For example, aggregation module 8 may be implemented as adownloadable or pre-installed application or “application.” In anotherexample, aggregation module 8 may be implemented as part of a hardwareunit of computing device 2. In another example, aggregation module 8 maybe implemented as part of an operating system of computing device 2.

Aggregation module 8 may receive data from components associated withcomputing device 2, such as UI module 6. For instance, aggregationmodule 8 may receive user input data from UI module 6 that causesaggregation module 8 to determine a contact (e.g., a person, a business,an organization, or other entity). User input data from UI module 6 mayalso cause aggregation module 8 to determine the contact from the actionrepresented by the input data, such as replying to an email. Aggregationmodule 8 may also send data to other components of computing device 2.For instance, aggregation module 8 may send an inquiry for informationbased on the contact to application modules 11. Aggregation module 8 mayalso send data to components associated with computing device 2, such asUI module 6. For instance, aggregation module 8 may send the contact orassociated contact identifiers determined from the data to UI module 6that causes UI device 4 to display the data at GUI 12.

Application modules 11A-11N (collectively, “application modules 11”) mayinclude functionality to perform any variety of operations. Applicationmodules 11 may execute functions for a specific application, such as atext application, photo viewer, social networking service, videoapplication, email application, word processor, spreadsheet, webbrowser, multimedia player, server application, image captureapplication, audio application, etc. In various instances, aggregationmodule 8 and one or more of applications modules 11 may exchange data.For example, aggregation module 8 may send a request for data to one ofapplication modules 11 associated with a contact (e.g., applicationmodule 11A). In response, application module 11A retrieves informationbased on the request and sends the retrieved information to aggregationmodule 8. In general, each of application modules 11 may retrieveinformation based on the request and send any identified information toaggregation module 8 that is associated with the contact.

As shown in FIG. 1, GUI 12 may be a user interface generated by UImodule 6 that allows user 9 to interact with computing device 2. GUI 12may include graphical content, such as text, images, a group of movingimages, etc. As shown in FIG. 1, graphical content may include theaggregated information received from aggregation module 8. Theinformation may be grouped together based on the context of thecomputing device. In some examples, the information may be displayedwithin GUI 12 as a visual notification, such as notifications 16, 18,20, 22, and 24. Each notification may include at least a portion of theretrieved information. GUI 12 may also include an indication of theapplication currently-executing at computing device 2 (e.g., applicationindication 14). Aggregation module 8 may determine a context of acomputing device. For example, aggregation module 8 may determine thecontext of computing device 2 by determining which application iscurrently-executing at computing device 2, the location of the device,the current date and time, etc. To identify the currently-executingapplication, aggregation module 8 may monitor all processescurrently-executing at computing device 2. Aggregation module 8 mayidentify the application based on the process name, file name, or filepath of the application associated with the executing process.

In some examples, aggregation module 8 may monitor function callsgenerated by currently-executing application (e.g., one or more ofapplications 11). The function calls may indicate resources of thecomputing device that each application is attempting to use, therebydetermining which applications, if any are accessing applicationprogramming interfaces (APIs) for generating or updating a graphicaluser interface. The application request for a user interface-related APImay indicate that the particular application is the applicationcurrently generating the user interface for output at UI device 4 ofcomputing device 2 (e.g., the currently-executing application).

Aggregation module 8 may receive information from one or more sensors,communication units, or other elements of computing device 2 and, basedon the received information, determine a location of computing device 2.For example, computing device 2 may communicate with a remote computingsystem or service provider using a network communication element. Inthis example, computing device 2 may determine its location by usingcellular tower triangulation. In another example, computing device 2 maydetermine the location based on a global positioning system (GPS) signalreceived at a GPS radio of computing device 2.

In response to identifying the context of computing device 2,aggregation module 8 may identify a contact based on the context ofcomputing device 2, including information about the applicationcurrently executed by computing device 2. A contact may be a person,business, event, location, landmark, or other entity. Aggregation module8 may identify the contact by locating contact identificationinformation based on information about the application, including thetype of the application. Various applications (such as email, textmessage, game, calendar, social networking application, photo/video,telephone, etc.) may contain different information about a contact. Forexample, email applications may include email messages and an emailaddress as the contact identifier while a social networking applicationsmay include contact information for users of the social networkingservice associated with a social network of a user. Further, differenttypes of applications may refer to the same contact differently. Forexample, and email application may identify an email address as thecontact, but a telephone application may identify a telephone number forthe same contact.

In some examples, aggregation module 8 may search for information for aspecific contact by identifying contact identifiers associated with thespecific contact. Contact identifiers may include alternative referencesto the contact, such as names, nicknames, phone numbers, user names,email addresses, account names, social networking names, addresses, etc.Aggregation module 8 may include a request for additional contactidentifiers within a request for information that aggregation module 8may send to each application and service. Aggregation module 8 may usethe contact identifiers provided by the applications and services toretrieve additional information associated with the contact fromdifferent applications and services, such that aggregation module 8 mayretrieve additional information about a particular contact that mayotherwise not be available to aggregation module 8.

Computing device 2 may execute one of application modules 11, such as atext message application. As shown in FIG. 1, user 9 may respond to atext message from “Tanja.” Responsive to aggregation module 8identifying that the text message application is currently-executing,aggregation module 8 may identify “Tanja” as a contact based on thesender of the text message. Aggregation module 8 may identifyalternative contact information for “Tanja,” such as a social networkingusername, a phone number, an email address, etc. by sending a requestfor information associated with the contact to one or more ofapplication modules 11. Each application module 11 that receives arequest may retrieve data that is associated with the contact and thatis maintained by the respective application module 11. In some examples,aggregation module 8 may receive information associated with the contactfrom a plurality of different sources. For example, one or more ofapplication modules 11 may retrieve information from a cloud service orother computing systems accessible using a network (e.g., a cellularnetwork, a data network, etc.) as well as from a data repository ofcomputing device 2.

Aggregation module 8 may also generate a request for information basedon “Tanja” all associated contact identifiers associated with “Tanja,”including the additional contact identifiers received in response to therequest for information sent to application modules 11, and send therequest to one or more of application modules 11. Application modules 11may identify information associated with any of the contact identifiersfor “Tanja.” For example, one of application modules 11 (e.g.,application module 11A) may be a social networking service. Applicationmodule 11A may identify the content of social network servicenotification 16 that identifies a recent social network service postassociated with Tanja. As another example, a text message applicationmay identifier additional text messages, as shown by text messagenotification 18, originating from “Tanja” based on by her telephonenumber. Similarly, an email application may identifier one or more emailmessages associated with Tanja, as shown by email message notification24, from an email account identified by an email address associated withTanja as identified by an email address. In general, aggregation module8 may receive the information from the various application modules 11and output the information to UI module 6 for inclusion within GUI 12.

Techniques of this disclosure may enable a computing device toautomatically display information associated with a specific person andretrieved from various sources based on a current context of thecomputing device. By automatically aggregating and presenting thisinformation, techniques of the disclosure may relieve a user fromsearching through various sources for information related to an email,phone call, text message, social network post, map, or other informationcurrently displayed by a computing device. In this manner, the computingdevice may automatically aggregate and display the person-specificinformation at a time when the information may be relevant and useful tothe user.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating further details of an examplecomputing device for aggregating information, in accordance with one ormore techniques of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 illustrates oneexample of computing device 2, and may other examples of computingdevice 2 may be implemented.

As shown in the specific example of FIG. 2, computing device 2 includesone or more processors 40, one or more input devices 42, one or morecommunication units 44, one or more output devices 46, one or morestorage devices 48, and user interface (UI) device 4. Although shown inFIGS. 1 and 2 as a stand-alone computing device 2 for purposes ofexample, a computing-device may be any component or system that includesa processor 40 or other suitable computing environment for executingsoftware instructions and, for example, need not includepresence-sensitive display 4. Computing device 2, in one example furtherincludes UI module 6, aggregation module 8 (including context module 30,contact identification module 32, information module 33 and ratingmodule 26), and operating system 54 that are executable by computingdevice 2. Each of components 4, 40, 42, 44, 46, and 48 may beinterconnected (physically, communicatively, and/or operatively) forinter-component communications. In some examples, communication channels50 may include a system bus, a network connection, an inter-processcommunication data structure, or any other method for communicatingdata. As one example in FIG. 2, components 4, 40, 42, 44, 46, and 48 maybe coupled by one or more communication channels 50. UI module 6 andaggregation module 8 (including context module 30 and contactidentification module 32) may also communicate information with oneanother as well as with other components in computing device 2, such asapplications modules 11.

Processors 40, in one example, are configured to implement functionalityand/or process instructions for execution within computing device 2. Forexample, processors 40 may be capable of processing instructions storedin storage device 48. Examples of processors 40 may include, any one ormore of a microprocessor, a controller, a digital signal processor(DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), afield-programmable gate array (FPGA), or equivalent discrete orintegrated logic circuitry.

One or more storage devices 48 may be configured to store informationwithin computing device 2 during operation. Storage device 48, in someexamples, is described as a computer-readable storage medium. In someexamples, storage device 48 is a temporary memory, meaning that aprimary purpose of storage device 48 is not long-term storage. Storagedevice 48, in some examples, is described as a volatile memory, meaningthat storage device 48 does not maintain stored contents when thecomputer is turned off. Examples of volatile memories include randomaccess memories (RAM), dynamic random access memories (DRAM), staticrandom access memories (SRAM), and other forms of volatile memoriesknown in the art. In some examples, storage device 48 is used to storeprogram instructions for execution by processors 40. Storage device 48,in one example, is used by software or applications running on computingdevice 2 (e.g., aggregation module 8) to temporarily store informationduring program execution.

Storage devices 48, in some examples, also include one or morecomputer-readable storage media. Storage devices 48 may be configured tostore larger amounts of information than volatile memory. Storagedevices 48 may further be configured for long-term storage ofinformation. In some examples, storage devices 48 include non-volatilestorage elements. Examples of such non-volatile storage elements includemagnetic hard discs, optical discs, floppy discs, flash memories, orforms of electrically programmable memories (EPROM) or electricallyerasable and programmable (EEPROM) memories.

Computing device 2, in some examples, also includes one or morecommunication units 44. Computing device 2, in one example, utilizescommunication unit 44 to communicate with external devices via one ormore networks, such as one or more wireless networks. Communication unit44 may be a network interface card, such as an Ethernet card, an opticaltransceiver, a radio frequency transceiver, or any other type of devicethat can send and receive information. Other examples of such networkinterfaces may include Bluetooth, 3G and WiFi radios computing devicesas well as Universal Serial Bus (USB). In some examples, computingdevice 2 utilizes communication unit 44 to wirelessly communicate withan external device such as a server.

Computing device 2, in one example, also includes one or more inputdevices 42. Input device 42, in some examples, is configured to receiveinput from a user through tactile, audio, or video feedback. Examples ofinput device 42 include a presence-sensitive display, a mouse, akeyboard, a voice responsive system, video camera, microphone or anyother type of device for detecting a command from a user. In someexamples, a presence-sensitive display includes a touch-sensitivescreen.

One or more output devices 46 may also be included in computing device2. Output device 46, in some examples, is configured to provide outputto a user using tactile, audio, or video stimuli. Output device 46, inone example, includes a presence-sensitive display, a sound card, avideo graphics adapter card, or any other type of device for convertinga signal into an appropriate form understandable to humans or machines.Additional examples of output device 46 include a speaker, a cathode raytube (CRT) monitor, a liquid crystal display (LCD), or any other type ofdevice that can generate intelligible output to a user. In someexamples, UI device 4 may include functionality of input device 42and/or output device 46. In the example of FIG. 2, UI device 4 may be atouch-sensitive screen.

Computing device 2 may include operating system 54. Operating system 54,in some examples, controls the operation of components of computingdevice 2. For example, operating system 54, in one example, facilitatesthe communication of UI module 6 and/or aggregation module 8 withprocessors 40, communication unit 44, storage device 48, input device42, and output device 46. UI module 6 and aggregation module 8 may eachinclude program instructions and/or data that are executable bycomputing device 2. As one example, UI module 6 may include instructionsthat cause computing device 2 to perform one or more of the operationsand actions described in the present disclosure.

Computing device 2 may store application data in application store 36.Application data may include contact data and contact identifiers. Otherdata may include account information. In some examples, application data36 may also include data received or created by the respectiveapplication associated with application data 36, such as communications,objects, contacts, application settings, etc.

Aggregation data 34 may store contact information identified usingtechniques of this disclosure. For example, aggregations data 34 maystore contact identifiers associated with the contact identified in aspecific context of computing device 2. Aggregation module 8 may accessthe data stored in aggregation data 34, such as identified contactidentifiers associated with contacts. Aggregation data may also includepreviously aggregated information stored in association with computingdevice context data and the contact at a different time for aggregatinginformation.

Computing device 2 can include additional components that, for clarity,are not shown in FIG. 2. For example, computing device 2 can include abattery to provide power to the components of computing device 2.Similarly, the components of computing device 2 shown in FIG. 2 may notbe necessary in every example of computing device 2. For example, insome configurations, computing device 2 may not include communicationunit 44.

Computing device 2 may execute an application that includes contactinformation within a GUI, such as GUI 12 of FIG. 1. In some examples,context module 30 may identify the application currently-executing bycomputing device 2. For example, aggregation module 8 may cause contextmodule 30 to identify the currently-executing application and associatedoperations to identify a context of computing device 2 and facilitateidentification of a contact associated with the context. In response toidentifying the currently-executing application, aggregation module 8may cause contact identification module 32 to identify the contactidentified by the executing application. In response to identifying thecontact, contact identification module 32 may automatically performoperations to identify other contact identifiers associated with thecontact.

Contact identification module 32 may send a request to applicationmodules 11 for other contact identifiers associated with the identifiedcontact. Contact identification module 32 may also send a request toapplication modules 11 for information about the contact and any contactidentifiers identified by application modules 11 that are associatedwith the contact. For example, application modules 11 may retrievestored data from application data 36, which stores data for each of therespective applications at computing device 2. In other examples, inresponse to the request for data by contact identification module 32,one or more of application modules 11 may communicate with a remotecomputing system associated with the respective application. The requestfor data, or information, may include association of the contact and thecontact identifiers, including associated application data, fromapplication modules 11.

The respective one of application modules 11 may send the request forcontact associated information, including contact identifiers andapplication data associated with the located contact associatedinformation, to communication unit 44. Communication unit 44 may sendthe request to the network of the associated computing system. Thecomputing system associated with the application may then perform one ormore operations to retrieve the information, including contactidentifiers associated with the contact, information associated with thecontact and associated contact identifiers, and application dataassociated with the information. In response to retrieving contact dataand contact identifier data, the computing system associated with theapplication may send the data to the respective application of computingdevice 2 associated with the computing system. The application may thensend the information to contact identification module 32.

In response to receiving the information, aggregation module 8 may sendthe received information to information module 33 to group the receivedinformation associated with the application and context of theinformation, such as associated application executed, date and time ofexecution, and contact data, together to create the notification.Information module 33 may then send the formatted notificationinformation to output device 46 to output the information at GUI 12.

In some examples, aggregation module 8 may output all the notificationsat GUI 12. In other examples, aggregation module 8 may determine apriority rating for each of the pieces of information received byinformation module 33. Techniques of priority rating are described infurther detail in FIG. 4. In some examples, GUI 12 may include only aportion of the received information in the notifications from all of thedata received by aggregation module 8. For example, in response toreceiving a large amount of data in response to the request forinformation, rating module 26 may rate each piece of informationassociated with the particular notification. In one example, ratingmodule 26 may determine a value for the piece of information associatedwith the respective notification to determine if the piece ofinformation should be included.

In another example, rating module 26 may determine a rating value forthe notification. The rating value of the notification may be based onthe rating value of for each piece of information associated with thenotification. For example, rating module 26 may base the rating value onthe highest rating value of all pieces of information of informationassociated with the notification. In response to determining ratingvalues, rating module 26 may send an indication to aggregation module 8that includes the determined the rating values.

In response to receiving the indication from rating module 26,aggregation module 8 may send data for the notifications, including theassociated information, to UI module 6. The indication data may includeonly a portion of the notifications that have a value indicatingincluding the notification in the output displayed at GUI 12. UI device4 may output one or more pieces of information for display at thepresence-sensitive display. Where aggregation module 8 does not userating techniques, aggregation module 8 may send all of the informationto UI module 6 for display at the presence-sensitive display.

In some implementations, aggregation module 8 may be configured to storein a memory the information associated with aggregations 8 aftergenerating the respective aggregated notifications (e.g., notifications52, 54, 56, 58, and 62). In other implementations, aggregation module 8can be configured to receive the information associated with therespective aggregation from the respective ones of application modules11 or from an operating system of computing device 2, e.g., from anevent manager of the operating system.

In response to aggregation module 8 sending the data to UI module 6 foroutput, the information may be stored at computing device 2. Forexample, computing device 2 may store the information in aggregationdata 34. The information stored may include the identified contact andcontact identifiers associated with the contact, data associated withthe context of the computing device, application data associated withthe retrieved information, and rating values, where rating values apply.The techniques are further described below in the description of FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a graphical user interfaceassociated with person-based information aggregation, in accordance withone or more aspects of the present disclosure. For purposes ofillustration only, graphical user interface 12 will be described withrespect to computing device 2 of FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of computing device 2 executing a calendarapplication when generating scheduled event notification 50. In responseto calendar application generating a calendar event notification 50,aggregation module 8 of computing device 2 may identify the recipientsof the calendar event “Project Meeting” and retrieve information fromthe invitees of the event “Project Meeting.” Aggregation module 8 maycause GUI 12 to output the retrieved information about the event anddisplay the information (e.g., as notifications 52, 54, 56, 58, and 62)at GUI 12, enabling user 9 to review the information when the eventnotification is generated.

In the example of FIG. 3, computing device 2 may identify the context ofcomputing device 2 as including a calendar application as acurrently-executing application (e.g., generating scheduled eventnotification 50). Computing device 2 may also identify the contact asthe invitees associated with the scheduled calendar event “projectmeeting” using techniques of this disclosure. In response to identifyingthe invitees for the “project meeting,” aggregation module 8 mayretrieve information about the invitees. The information may appear atGUI 12 in an ordered list, displaying the information per context of aparticular application generated the information.

In some examples, the pieces of information associated with the personmay only be available to aggregation module 8 if a user of computingdevice 2 provides permission for aggregation module 8 to access theinformation. For example, some of the applications executed by computingdevice 2 may require permission prior to accessing applicationinformation. In these instances, aggregation module 8 may cause GUI 12to display a request for permission to access the applicationinformation. In other examples, the respective application may allowuser 9 access to the information without being prompted. Aggregationmodule 8 or a system-wide settings application or service may provide aconfiguration user interface that enables the user to select the scopeof information the user to which access is granted to aggregation module8.

As illustrated in the example of FIG. 3, computing device 2 may executeone of applications 12, for example a calendar application 50, in aparticular context. The context of the application may include at leastone of a type of application module, the identity (e.g., name) of theapplication, or information associated with an activity the applicationis performing. In response to identifying the contact, computing device2 may retrieve information associated with the identified contact fromapplications executed by computing device 2. For example, user 9 mayhave an account with a social networking service and be able to accesstheir account with an application executed by computing device 2. User 9may have account access information saved at computing device 2, or user9 may be prompted to enter account verification information. Onceaccount authentication is verified and account access is granted, GUI 12may automatically display the notification associated with theidentified contact, such as Steve's social networking update 54.

Notifications may include information accessible only through executedapplications, such as telephone call information 52, including callinformation or voicemail messages. In another example, social networkingusers associated with the social network of user 9 may communicate withthe social network of user 9. The communications may be included in thenotifications, such as location identifier 54 and communication 56. Someapplications may contain objects, documents, and other data. Thenotifications may include data that was included in a communication oras an attachment to the communication, and may include the all or partof the objects, document, or data as illustrated by notification 58. Aportion of the document 60 is identified in the notification that was anattachment to an email message 58.

In the example of FIG. 3, notifications may include information aftercomputing device 2 authenticates access to the information prompted. Theapplication may grant access on a system-wide level or based on the typeof information.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example process for prioritizinginformation for use in person-based information aggregation, inaccordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure. Forpurposes of illustration only, the process of FIG. 4 is described belowwith respect to computing device 2 of FIGS. 1 and 2 and GUI 12 of FIG.1.

Aggregation module 8 may retrieve one or more pieces of informationbased on an identified contact. In some examples, aggregation module 8may retrieve a substantial amount of data. To limit the data displayedat GUI 12, computing device 2 may determine a priority rating for eachpiece of information. The priority rating, generally, is a score, ornumber value, representing the predicted relevance to the user in aparticular context and for the identified contact. Aggregation module 8may base the priority rating value on data retrieved with theinformation, including associated application data, and the contact andassociated contact identifiers.

As shown in FIG. 4, aggregation module 8 may retrieve many, e.g., morethan 5, pieces of information for a determined contact. In response toreceiving many pieces of information, aggregation module 8 determines apriority rating value for each piece of information (90). For instance,aggregation module 8 can be configured to assign a higher priority tothe information of a similar or same type as the application that iscurrently-executing by computing device 2. A higher priority rating maybe given to the information when aggregation module 8 identifiesmultiple pieces of information that match information in thecurrently-executing application and the application sending theretrieved information. In the example of FIG. 3, the displayed pieces ofinformation have a higher priority rating due to the Aggregation module8 may give a higher priority rating to information more recent in timeor from associated with an application that is more frequently used.Aggregation module 8 can alternatively or additionally compare theidentity of the application being executed by computing device 2 to theapplication from which aggregation module 8 received the instruction togenerate the respective information. Aggregation module 8 may assign ahigher priority value to the information based on an instruction fromthe currently executed application compared stored information fromanother one of applications 12.

Further, in some instances, for each piece of information, aggregationmodule 8 can compare the information associated with the activityperformed by applications 12 and information stored in the respectiveapplication. Aggregation module 8 may then assign a higher priorityrating to a piece of information that is more closely related to theactivity that the executed application is performing. For example, whenthe user is posting on a social networking message on the user'saccount, older posts to the identified person would have a higherpriority rating. In an alternative example, applications 12 locates abirthday notification event for a specific person in a calendarapplication, when the name of the specific person is identified in anemail that the user is composing, on the same day as the specificperson's birthday, then generating the event on the same day willincrease the priority rating for the birthday information associatedwith the recipient of the email. Aggregation module 8 may analyze andcompare any kind of information associated with stored information ofapplications 12, such as type of information, date and time of theinformation or execution of the respective application, recency andfrequency of executing the respective application, and with the activityperformed by the application.

In one example, in the example of FIG. 1, the recipient of the textmessage, “Tanja,” may have an association with the same socialnetworking service of the user. The association may cause the socialnetworking posts to receive a higher priority rating. The timeassociated with the data may also increase the priority score, such astext message 18 received 30 minutes ago may receive a higher priorityrating over information received at an earlier time, such as email 24received 1 month ago.

Computing device 2 may determine threshold value based on the overallpriority rating scores of the pieces of information (92). For example,aggregation module 8 may select the pieces of information with the top1-20% of scores. For example, aggregation module 8 may determine athreshold value based on all the priority rating values. The value mayidentify a priority rating value at the 20% of all scores and determinethis value as the threshold value.

Aggregation compares the determined priority rating value to a thresholdvalue to determine which pieces of information to select as informationassociated with the contact (94). By setting a threshold value,aggregation module 8 may filter the information to improve the accuracyof the retrieved information and the relevancy of the information. Foreach sharing service with a probability rating value that does notsatisfy the threshold value (e.g., is lower than the threshold value)(“NO” branch of 94), computing device 2 does not select the respectivepiece of information for display at GUI 12 (98). For each piece ofinformation with a probability value that satisfies the threshold value(e.g., is greater the threshold value) (“YES” branch of 94), aggregationmodule 8 selects the respective piece of information as a piece ofinformation associated with the contact (96). Computing device 10displays the selected preferences at GUI 12 (99). In some examples,aggregation module 8 outputs the retrieved pieces of information basedon the determined probability value.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example process for aggregatingperson-based information, in accordance with one or more techniques ofthe present disclosure. For purposes of illustration only, the processof FIG. 5 is described below with respect to computing device 2 of FIGS.1 and 2 and GUI 12 of FIG. 1.

In one example, computing device 2 may determine a context of computingdevice 2, the context of computing device 2 including acurrently-executing application (100). Based on the context of computingdevice 2, computing device 2 may identify a contact and a plurality ofcontact identifiers associated with the contact (102). Computing device2 may receive, from two or more different sources and based on at leastone contact identifier from the plurality of contact identifiers,information associated with the contact, wherein the informationincludes a respective portion of information received from each of thetwo or more different sources (104). Computing device 2 may determine,based on the context of the computing device, a respective priorityvalue for each of the portions of the information (106). Computingdevice 2 may select, based on the respective priority value, one or moreportions of the information (108). Computing device 2 may output, fordisplay, a graphical user interface including at least the selected oneor more portions of the information (110).

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an example computing device thatoutputs graphical content for display at a remote device, in accordancewith one or more techniques of the present disclosure. Graphicalcontent, generally, may include any visual information that may beoutput for display, such as text, images, a group of moving images, etc.The example shown in FIG. 6 includes a computing device 200,presence-sensitive display 201, communication unit 210, projector 220,projector screen 222, tablet device 226, and visual display device 230.Although shown for purposes of example in FIGS. 1 and 2 as a stand-alonecomputing device, a computing device may, generally, be any component orsystem that includes a processor or other suitable computing environmentfor executing software instructions and, for example, need not include apresence-sensitive display.

As shown in the example of FIG. 6, computing device 200 may be aprocessor that includes functionality as described with respect toprocessor 40 in FIG. 2. In such examples, computing device 200 may beoperatively coupled to presence-sensitive display 201 by a communicationchannel 202A, which may be a system bus or other suitable connection.Computing device 200 may also be operatively coupled to communicationunit 210, further described below, by a communication channel 202B,which may also be a system bus or other suitable connection. Althoughshown separately as an example in FIG. 6, computing device 200 may beoperatively coupled to presence-sensitive display 201 and communicationunit 210 by any number of one or more communication channels.

In other examples, such as illustrated previously in FIGS. 1-2,computing device 200 may be a portable or mobile device such as mobilephones (including smart phones), laptop computers, etc. In someexamples, computing device 200 may be a desktop computers, tabletcomputers, smart television platforms, cameras, personal digitalassistants (PDAs), servers, mainframes, etc.

Presence-sensitive display 201, as shown in FIG. 6, may include displaydevice 203 and presence-sensitive input device 205. Display device 203may, for example, receive data from computing device 200 and display thegraphical content. In some examples, presence-sensitive input device 205may determine one or more user inputs (e.g., continuous gestures,multi-touch gestures, single-touch gestures, etc.) at presence-sensitivedisplay 201 using capacitive, inductive, and/or optical recognitiontechniques and send indications of such user input to computing device200 using communication channel 202A. In some examples,presence-sensitive input device 205 may be physically positioned on topof display device 203 such that, when a user positions an input unitover a graphical element displayed by display device 203, the locationat which presence-sensitive input device 205 corresponds to the locationof display device 203 at which the graphical element is displayed.

As shown in FIG. 6, computing device 200 may also include and/or beoperatively coupled with communication unit 210. Communication unit 210may include functionality of communication unit 44 as described in FIG.2. Examples of communication unit 210 may include a network interfacecard, an Ethernet card, an optical transceiver, a radio frequencytransceiver, or any other type of device that can send and receiveinformation. Other examples of such communication units may includeBluetooth, 3G, and WiFi radios, Universal Serial Bus (USB) interfaces,etc. Computing device 200 may also include and/or be operatively coupledwith one or more other devices, e.g., input devices, output devices,memory, storage devices, etc. that are not shown in FIG. 6 for purposesof brevity and illustration.

FIG. 6 also illustrates a projector 220 and projector screen 222. Othersuch examples of projection devices may include electronic whiteboards,holographic display devices, and any other suitable devices fordisplaying graphical content. Projector 220 and project screen 222 mayinclude one or more communication units that enable the respectivedevices to communicate with computing device 200. In some examples, theone or more communication units may enable communication betweenprojector 220 and projector screen 222. Projector 220 may receive datafrom computing device 200 that includes graphical content. Projector220, in response to receiving the data, may project the graphicalcontent onto projector screen 222. In some examples, projector 220 maydetermine one or more user inputs (e.g., continuous gestures,multi-touch gestures, single-touch gestures, etc.) at projector screenusing optical recognition or other suitable techniques and sendindications of such user input using one or more communication units tocomputing device 200.

Projector screen 222, in some examples, may include a presence-sensitivedisplay 224. Presence-sensitive display 224 may include a subset offunctionality or all of the functionality of UI device 4 as described inthis disclosure. In some examples, presence-sensitive display 224 mayinclude additional functionality. Projector screen 222 (e.g., anelectronic whiteboard), may receive data from computing device 200 anddisplay the graphical content. In some examples, presence-sensitivedisplay 224 may determine one or more user inputs (e.g., continuousgestures, multi-touch gestures, single-touch gestures, etc.) atprojector screen 222 using capacitive, inductive, and/or opticalrecognition techniques and send indications of such user input using oneor more communication units to computing device 200.

FIG. 6 also illustrates tablet device 226 and visual display device 230.Tablet device 226 and visual display device 230 may each includecomputing and connectivity capabilities. Examples of tablet device 226may include e-reader devices, convertible notebook devices, hybrid slatedevices, etc. Examples of visual display device 230 may includetelevisions, computer monitors, etc. As shown in FIG. 6, tablet device226 may include a presence-sensitive display 228. Visual display device230 may include a presence-sensitive display 232. Presence-sensitivedisplays 228, 232 may include a subset of functionality or all of thefunctionality of UI device 4 as described in this disclosure. In someexamples, presence-sensitive displays 228, 232 may include additionalfunctionality. In any case, presence-sensitive display 232, for example,may receive data from computing device 200 and display the graphicalcontent. In some examples, presence-sensitive display 232 may determineone or more user inputs (e.g., continuous gestures, multi-touchgestures, single-touch gestures, etc.) at projector screen usingcapacitive, inductive, and/or optical recognition techniques and sendindications of such user input using one or more communication units tocomputing device 200.

As described above, in some examples, computing device 200 may outputgraphical content for display at presence-sensitive display 201 that iscoupled to computing device 200 by a system bus or other suitablecommunication channel. Computing device 200 may also output graphicalcontent for display at one or more remote devices, such as projector220, projector screen 222, tablet device 226, and visual display device230. For instance, computing device 200 may execute one or moreinstructions to generate and/or modify graphical content in accordancewith techniques of the present disclosure. Computing device 200 mayoutput the data that includes the graphical content to a communicationunit of computing device 200, such as communication unit 210.Communication unit 210 may send the data to one or more of the remotedevices, such as projector 220, projector screen 222, tablet device 226,and/or visual display device 230. In this way, computing device 200 mayoutput the graphical content for display at one or more of the remotedevices. In some examples, one or more of the remote devices may outputthe graphical content at a presence-sensitive display that is includedin and/or operatively coupled to the respective remote devices.

In some examples, computing device 200 may not output graphical contentat presence-sensitive display 201 that is operatively coupled tocomputing device 200. In other examples, computing device 200 may outputgraphical content for display at both a presence-sensitive display 201that is coupled to computing device 200 by communication channel 202A,and at one or more remote devices. In such examples, the graphicalcontent may be displayed substantially contemporaneously at eachrespective device. For instance, some delay may be introduced by thecommunication latency to send the data that includes the graphicalcontent to the remote device. In some examples, graphical contentgenerated by computing device 200 and output for display atpresence-sensitive display 201 may be different than graphical contentdisplay output for display at one or more remote devices.

Computing device 200 may send and receive data using any suitablecommunication techniques. For example, computing device 200 may beoperatively coupled to external network 214 using network link 212A.Each of the remote devices illustrated in FIG. 6 may be operativelycoupled to network external network 214 by one of respective networklinks 212B, 212C, and 212D. External network 214 may include networkhubs, network switches, network routers, etc., that are operativelyinter-coupled thereby providing for the exchange of information betweencomputing device 200 and the remote devices illustrated in FIG. 6. Insome examples, network links 212A-212D may be Ethernet, ATM or othernetwork connections. Such connections may be wireless and/or wiredconnections.

In some examples, computing device 200 may be operatively coupled to oneor more of the remote devices included in FIG. 6 using direct devicecommunication 218. Direct device communication 218 may includecommunications through which computing device 200 sends and receivesdata directly with a remote device, using wired or wirelesscommunication. That is, in some examples of direct device communication218, data sent by computing device 200 may not be forwarded by one ormore additional devices before being received at the remote device, andvice-versa. Examples of direct device communication 218 may includeBluetooth, Near-Field Communication, Universal Serial Bus, WiFi,infrared, etc. One or more of the remote devices illustrated in FIG. 6may be operatively coupled with computing device 200 by communicationlinks 216A-216D. In some examples, communication links 212A-212D may beconnections using Bluetooth, Near-Field Communication, Universal SerialBus, infrared, etc. Such connections may be wireless and/or wiredconnections.

In accordance with techniques of the disclosure, computing device 200may determine a context of computing device 200, which may include acurrently-executing application (e.g., an applicationcurrently-executing at or by computing device 200). Based on thedetermined context, computing device 200 may identify a contactassociated with the currently-executing application and may alsoidentify a plurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact.Computing device 200 may receive, from two or more different sources andbased on at least one contact identifier, information associated withthe contact. The information may include a respective portion ofinformation received from each of the two or more different sources.That is, each of the two or more different sources may provide adifferent portion of the information to computing device 200. Based onthe context of computing device 200, computing device 200 may determinea respective priority value for each of the portion of the information.Computing device 200 may select, based on the priority the respectivepriority values, one or more portions of information and output, fordisplay (e.g., at visual display device 230), a graphical user interfacethat includes at least the selected one or more portion of information.

In one or more examples, the functions described may be implemented inhardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implementedin software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over, as oneor more instructions or code, a computer-readable medium and executed bya hardware-based processing unit. Computer-readable media may includecomputer-readable storage media, which corresponds to a tangible mediumsuch as data storage media, or communication media including any mediumthat facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place toanother, e.g., according to a communication protocol. In this manner,computer-readable media generally may correspond to (1) tangiblecomputer-readable storage media, which is non-transitory or (2) acommunication medium such as a signal or carrier wave. Data storagemedia may be any available media that can be accessed by one or morecomputers or one or more processors to retrieve instructions, codeand/or data structures for implementation of the techniques described inthis disclosure. A computer program product may include acomputer-readable medium.

By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable storagemedia can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical diskstorage, magnetic disk storage, or other magnetic storage devices, flashmemory, or any other medium that can be used to store desired programcode in the form of instructions or data structures and that can beaccessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed acomputer-readable medium. For example, if instructions are transmittedfrom a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable,fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), orwireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then thecoaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wirelesstechnologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in thedefinition of medium. It should be understood, however, thatcomputer-readable storage media and data storage media do not includeconnections, carrier waves, signals, or other transient media, but areinstead directed to non-transient, tangible storage media. Disk anddisc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc, opticaldisc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc, wheredisks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce dataoptically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be includedwithin the scope of computer-readable media.

Instructions may be executed by one or more processors, such as one ormore digital signal processors (DSPs), general purpose microprocessors,application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmablelogic arrays (FPGAs), central processing units (CPUs), or otherequivalent integrated or discrete logic circuitry. Accordingly, the term“processor,” as used herein may refer to any of the foregoing structureor any other structure suitable for implementation of the techniquesdescribed herein. In addition, in some aspects, the functionalitydescribed herein may be provided within dedicated hardware and/orsoftware modules. Also, the techniques could be fully implemented in oneor more circuits or logic elements.

The techniques of this disclosure may be implemented in a wide varietyof devices or apparatuses, including a wireless handset, an integratedcircuit (IC) or a set of ICs (e.g., a chip set). Various components,modules, or units are described in this disclosure to emphasizefunctional aspects of devices configured to perform the disclosedtechniques, but do not necessarily require realization by differenthardware units. Rather, as described above, various units may becombined in a hardware unit or provided by a collection ofinteroperative hardware units, including one or more processors asdescribed above, in conjunction with suitable software and/or firmware.

Various embodiments of the disclosure have been described. These andother embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: determining, by a computingdevice comprising at least one processor, a context of the computingdevice, the context of the computing device including acurrently-executing application, wherein the currently-executingapplication generates at least a portion of a graphical user interfacebeing output by the computing device; identifying, by the computingdevice and based on the context of the computing device, a contactassociated with the currently-executing application and a plurality ofcontact identifiers associated with the contact, wherein one or morecontact identifiers from the plurality of contact identifiers associatedwith the contact comprise at least one of a nickname, an alias, a phonenumber, an address, a username, an email address, and user defined data;receiving, by the computing device, from two or more different sourcesand based on at least one contact identifier from the plurality ofcontact identifiers, information associated with the contact, whereinthe information includes a respective portion of information receivedfrom each of the two or more different sources, and wherein theinformation associated with the contact includes information other thanthe plurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact;determining, by the computing device and based on the context of thecomputing device, a respective priority value for each of the portionsof the information; selecting, by the computing device and based on therespective priority value, one or more portions of the information; andoutputting, by the computing device and for display, a graphical userinterface including at least the selected one or more portions of theinformation.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the contextof the computing device comprises identifying the currently-executingapplication based at least in part on one of the process name, filename, or file path of the application associated with a processexecuting at the computing device.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereindetermining the context of the computing device comprises identifyingthe currently-executing application based at least in part on a functioncall generated by the currently-executing application.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the identified contact is one or more of a person, abusiness, an object, a location, a landmark, and a place of interest. 5.The method of claim 1, further comprising storing, at the computingdevice, the plurality of contact identifiers associated with thecontact.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving the informationfrom the two or more different sources comprises retrieving theinformation from the computing device and a computing systemcommunicatively coupled to the computing device.
 7. The method of claim1, wherein retrieving the information from the two or more differentsources comprises: generating, by the computing device, two or morerequests for the information associated with the contact, wherein eachof the two or more different sources is associated with a respectiverequest of the two or more requests; sending, from the computing device,the respective request to the different source from the two or moredifferent sources associated with the respective request; and receiving,by the computing device from the two or more different sources, theinformation.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein receiving the informationfrom the two or more different sources comprises receiving at least aportion of the information from a restricted user account associatedwith one of the two or more different sources.
 9. The method of claim 1,wherein receiving the information comprises: authenticating, by thecomputing device and based on authentication information associated withthe contact, a user account associated with the contact; and responsiveto the authenticating, receiving, by the computing device and based onthe user account, the respective portion of the information.
 10. Themethod of claim 1, wherein retrieving the information further comprises:receiving, by the computing device, information associated with at leastone of an identity of a source from the plurality of different sources,application activity associated with at least one piece of informationfrom the one or more pieces of information, and a time and dateassociated with the at least one piece of information; and receiving, bythe computing device, information associated with thecurrently-executing application including at least one of applicationusage information, and application identification information.
 11. Themethod of claim 1, wherein determining the respective priority ratingfurther comprises determining a value that indicates a predictedrelevance of the information to a user of the computing device.
 12. Themethod of claim 11, wherein determining the value that indicates apredicted relevance of the information to a user of the computing deviceis based on the context of the computing device.
 13. The method of claim1, wherein selecting, based on the respective priority value, the one ormore portions of information comprises selecting each portion of theinformation determined to have a respective priority value thatsatisfies a threshold.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein determiningthe respective priority value for each of the portions of informationcomprises, responsive to determining that the contact is associated witha social network service, increasing the respective priority value foreach portion of information associated with the social network serviceby a configurable amount.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein determiningthe respective priority value for each of the portions of informationcomprises increasing the respective priority value proportionally to anamount of time that has elapsed since a software application associatedwith the respective portion of information was last executed by thecomputing device.
 16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:identifying, by the computing device, a respective software applicationassociated with each of the portions of information, wherein determiningthe priority rating for each of the portions of information comprisesassigning a priority value to each of the portions of the informationbased on a characteristic of the respective software application. 17.The method of claim 1, wherein outputting the graphical user interfaceincluding at least the selected one or more portions of the informationfurther comprises: determining, by the computing device and based on therespective priority rating of each of the selected one or more portionsof information, an order of the selected one or more portions ofinformation; and outputting, by the computing device and for display,the selected one or more portions of information in the order, whereinthe respective priority rating for each of the portions of informationsatisfies a threshold value.
 18. A non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium is encoded with instructions that, when executed, causeone or more processors of a computing device to: determine a context ofthe computing device, the context of the computing device including acurrently-executing application, wherein the currently-executingapplication generates at least a portion of a graphical user interfacebeing output by the computing device; identify, based on the context ofthe computing device, a contact associated with the currently-executingapplication and a plurality of contact identifiers associated with thecontact, wherein one or more contact identifiers from the plurality ofcontact identifiers associated with the contact comprise at least one ofa nickname, an alias, a phone number, an address, a username, an emailaddress, and user defined data; receive, from two or more differentsources and based on at least one contact identifier from the pluralityof contact identifiers, information associated with the contact, whereinthe information includes a respective portion of information receivedfrom each of the two or more different sources, and wherein theinformation associated with the contact includes information other thanthe plurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact;determine, based on the context of the computing device, a respectivepriority value for each of the portions of the information; select,based on the respective priority value, one or more portions of theinformation; and output, for display, a graphical user interfaceincluding at least the selected one or more portions of the information.19. A computing device, comprising: one or more processors, wherein theone or more processors are configured to: determine a context of thecomputing device, the context of the computing device including acurrently-executing application, wherein the currently-executingapplication generates at least a portion of a graphical user interfacebeing output by the computing device; identify, based on the context ofthe computing device, a contact associated with the currently-executingapplication and a plurality of contact identifiers associated with thecontact, wherein one or more contact identifiers from the plurality ofcontact identifiers associated with the contact comprise at least one ofa nickname, an alias, a phone number, an address, a username, an emailaddress, and user defined data; receive, from two or more differentsources and based on at least one contact identifier from the pluralityof contact identifiers, information associated with the contact, whereinthe information includes a respective portion of information receivedfrom each of the two or more different sources, and wherein theinformation associated with the contact includes information other thanthe plurality of contact identifiers associated with the contact;determine, based on the context of the computing device, a respectivepriority value for each of the portions of the information; select,based on the respective priority value, one or more portions of theinformation; and output, for display, a graphical user interfaceincluding at least the selected one or more portions of the information.